European Railroad Discussion > Cwmbargoed last week

The open cast operation at Cwmbargoed, east of Merthyr Tydfil, will soon be the only operational coal mine in the UK, and then not for long as I don't think South Wales (Merthyr) Ltd's licence extends past the end of 2022. So we have to make the best of it whilst we can.

Last Monday there was just one train, the 4V01 empties from Hope Cement at Earls Sidings in the North of England, returning as 6M77. Here it is in the washery at lunchtime being loaded, loading is by bucket loader. It carries just under 1000 tonnes of coal and normally runs twice a week, loading on Mondays and Frdays. From the washery I made my way up on to Merthyr Common to await its departure, which was just before 4 p.m. about two hour early (it normally runs very early). 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/19/21 08:06 by 86235.

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It drifts down the Taff Bargoed valley, passing the site of the Ffynnonau Duon (Black Wells) no.3 drift mine which was operational until a few years ago. Normally after leaving Cwmbargoed 6M77 returns to Margam Yard, adjacent to Port Talbot steelworks, where it recesses for most of the evening before setting off for Earls Sidings just after midnight. But on Monday that didn't happen, the train stayed there all day Tuesday as well until an extra schedule (VSTP - very short term plan) turned up for a daylight run up the Marches Line on Wednesday, and here it is passing Penperlleni, a few miles south of Abergavenny just after mid day. The first daylight loaded coal train I've seen since October 2017.

On Friday I was up early and out on the top of Mynydd Fochriw on Gelligaer Common (opposite Merthyr Common where I'd been on Monday) for the early morning 4C93, empties from Margam. This runs five or six times a week, mostly returning with coal for Port Talbot but occasionally the coal goes elsewhere, to the steelworks at Scunthorpe in Lincolnshire or a smokeless fuel plant at Immingham Docks. I was lucky that on Friday 4C93 was running about 40 minutes late, you can just pick out the headlight in the shadows as the train first appeared at about 8:30 a.m.

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Despite it being empty the train plods up the valley, it was a beautiful still morning so the sounds of the labouring EMD engine drifting up the valley before I actually saw it. Second shot is it backing in to the washery ready for loading, you can see the bucket loader surrounded by piles of coal. Being Friday there was a second train scheduled to Cwmbargoed, the 4V01 from Hope Cement, the one seen on Monday and Wednesday. And here it is on its journey from Margam Yard passing Barry Docks on the secondary Vale of Glamorgam line which it is routed along between Bridgend and Cardiff instead of the South Wales Mainline (SWML). The low grade track in the foreground is the lead into Barry Docks used by Dow Chemical traffic.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/20/21 02:53 by 86235.

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Nice set, Nick!  Took me a sec to find the train in #6.

Excellent photo series.  The Class 66 is one of my favorites.
Sound made by #66004 must have really been awesome.
Difficult to believe coal mining in Britain is coming to an end.
Thanks for another great photo posting.
ALLEN
 

dwatry Wrote:
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> Nice set, Nick!  Took me a sec to find the train
> in #6.
Sadly not one with the ultra bright LED headlights, that would have been more dramatic.

krm152 Wrote:
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> Excellent photo series.  The Class 66 is one of
> my favorites.
> Sound made by #66004 must have really been
> awesome.
> Difficult to believe coal mining in Britain is
> coming to an end.
> Thanks for another great photo posting.
> ALLEN
>  
Thanks Allen, yes the death of coal mining here has been a long drawn out affair but it really does seem as though the end isn't too far away, especially as the plans for a new deep mine for metallurgical coal have been referred to a public enquiry.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/20/21 02:56 by 86235.

Having never been to Wales, this is all very interesting.  So, how do you pronounce "Ffynnonau Duon", and, "Mynydd Fochriw"?

smf2mry Wrote:
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> Having never been to Wales, this is all very
> interesting.  So, how do you pronounce "Ffynnonau
> Duon", and, "Mynydd Fochriw"?

Welsh is a phonetic language but the sounds of some letters in Welsh is different to how they sound in English. But their sound is always the same.

A single F sounds like a V, there's no V in Welsh (or Q, X and Z and K and J are relatively new letters, introduced to deal with anglicised words). Ff sounds like F in English. Dd is a letter in the Welsh alphabet, it sounds a little like someone with a lisp trying to pronounce Th in English. Put your tongue between your teeth and blow, that sort of produces the Dd sound.

So Ffynnonau Duon is pronounced Fynon-aye De-on and Mynydd Fochriw sort of sounds like Minith Vockreeoo.

I'm no expert, I've only been studying Welsh for four years.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 04/21/21 09:36 by 86235.

Great vantage points, Nick!

exhaustED Wrote:
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> Great vantage points, Nick!

Thanks, it is a splendid bit of upland country.

86235 Wrote:
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> smf2mry Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Having never been to Wales, this is all very
> > interesting.  So, how do you pronounce
> "Ffynnonau
> > Duon", and, "Mynydd Fochriw"?
>
> Welsh is a phonetic language but the sounds of
> some letters in Welsh is different to how they
> sound in English. But their sound is always the

Thanks so much, I think I may have hurt myself trying to pronounce these locations ; )
> same.
>
> A single F sounds like a V, there's no V in Welsh
> (or Q, X and Z and K and J are relatively new
> letters, introduced to deal with anglicised
> words). Ff sounds like F in English. Dd is a
> letter in the Welsh alphabet, it sounds a little
> like someone with a lisp trying to pronounce Th in
> English. Put your tongue between your teeth and
> blow, that sort of produces the Dd sound.
>
> So Ffynnonau Duon is pronounced Fynon-aye De-on
> and Mynydd Fochriw sort of sounds like Minith
> Vockreeoo.
>
> I'm no expert, I've only been studying Welsh for
> four years.